Garamendi is getting the support of even his critics to opt for a third term at the head of CEOE

The first big litmus passed so yes Antonio Garamendi can continue at the head of CEOE after the end of the second term. Practically all members of the executive board of the employers’ association — even those most critical of him — have given their consent to the initiative that will allow him to remain president from 2026, when his current mandate expires, according to sources present at the meeting. The proposal to remove the limitation of not having more than two consecutive legislatures in the presidency of the CEOE was officially launched this Wednesday by the Commission for the Internal Regime and received the explicit support of such important and key organizations as the Madrid employers’ association CEIM, which just this past Tuesday again elected Miguel Garrido as president; Catalan Foment del Treball; valence CEV; association of employers of small and medium enterprises Cepyme; self-employed, ATA; that of the bank, AEB; insurance company Unespa; structures, Seopán and CNC; and that of metal, Confemetal; among many.

There was only one vote against, that of digital industry employer Ametic, and pharmacy employer FAFE abstained, explaining that it did not support removing the mandate to maintain consistency as it would not change it. . Currently, the vast majority of business organizations, more than 85%, do not have a presidency limited to eight years and, in fact, Garamendi assures that he wants to carry out this modernization election process because various employers asked them to do so.

In the absence of a procedure

But there is still one final step to be taken: the next step is to ensure that the CEOE’s General Assembly on July 19 confirms these changes, which would allow Garamendi will remain in power after 2026. something that goes without saying.

The surprise of the management board yesterday It came from the hands of Garamendi’s chief detractor, the president of Fomento, Josep Sánchez Llibre, who, despite having so far shown some reluctance towards these changes, which adds to the campaign against which he led during the re-election process of the Basque businessman last November, not only supported the modification of the statutes for cede the third mandate to Garamendi, but also praised this proposal and expressed loyalty to the current president. What’s more, after he finished his speech, the Catalan and the Basque embraced in a hug that drew applause from the rest of the board.

Even the president of Cepyme, Gerardo Cuerva, who is also involved in the critical sector, also took to the microphone and He praised Garamendi strongly, which allowed Basque to come out stronger of this process.